Delhi HC Asks RSPL To Revise Ghadi Detergent Ads After HUL Suit

The Delhi High Court on Friday directed RSPL Ltd. to revise its television advertisements for Ghadi detergent powder by June 24 after Hindustan Unilever Ltd. filed a suit alleging product disparagement.

In its plea, HUL claimed that RSPL’s advertisement made misleading comparisons to Surf Excel, its premium detergent brand. The ad showed two women picking detergent powders—one chooses Ghadi while the other picks a blue pack labelled ‘XL-Blue’. The shopkeeper in the ad comments that the blue detergent is “fraudulent” and doesn’t clean properly, while praising Ghadi for its performance, price, and foam quality.

HUL argued that the ad mimicked Surf Excel’s branding and mocked its tagline ‘daag achhe hai’ by using similar language. The petitioner also noted that RSPL used light blue packaging and the words ‘XL-Blue’ in the ad, which it claimed were clear references to Surf Excel.

Justice Prathiba Singh said the court was, at this stage, prima facie of the view that the ad's content could be understood by the average consumer as referring to Surf Excel. The court observed that advertisers were not permitted to use derogatory remarks against competitors and asked RSPL to remove specific lines deemed objectionable by Monday.

The court also issued summons to RSPL and posted the case for further hearing. In its response, RSPL argued that HUL did not have exclusive rights over the term 'Excel' or 'XL', and there were several other detergent powders in the market with blue packaging.